Auburn HC Gus Malzahn doesn't yet know if junior RB Kerryon Johnson (ribs, shoulder) will be able to play in the Peach Bowl against UCF on Jan. 1.

"I know he'll want to play (in the Peach Bowl)," Malzahn said Wednesday. "He's a great competitor. All of our guys will want to play. Our guys play for each other. So we'll see where that goes. I'll have a better idea once we get out to practice and move around and everything that goes with that." The coach added that Johnson didn't need surgery to correct the medical issues. Johnson suffered a shoulder injury in the Iron Bowl last month against Alabama. He tried to play through it against Georgia in the SEC title game, but proved ineffective (44 yards on 13 carries).

We assume the Tar Heels' coaching staff didn't take to the former four-star recruit, because all signs Byrd must have gotten this fall pointed towards his eventual exit. UNC started three different quarterbacks during its lost 2017 season; Brandon Harris, Nathan Elliott and Chazz Surratt. Somehow, Byrd was not given his audition, never seeing even one snap. The 6-foot-3, 230-pounder was one of the top pro-style QBs in the country coming out of high school. Meanwhile, Elliott and Surratt will compete for UNC's starting QB job next year.

Oregon HC Mario Cristobal declined to speculate on whether senior RB Royce Freeman would play against Boise State in the Las Vegas Bowl on Saturday.

"No update yet," Cristobal said. Freeman is apparently mulling the possibility of skipping the game to begin preparing for the NFL Draft. This could go either way: While the rumors and Cristobal's evasive statements would seem to indicate that there's a decent chance Freeman will sit, the star running back did practice with the Ducks on Tuesday. Boise State HC Bryan Harsin said he's preparing as though he'll face Freeman, but Harsin did ask media members if they thought Freeman would play, an indication of just how serious this possibility is. Freeman ranks No. 9 in the FBS with 1,475 rushing yards this year. He's also scored 16 touchdowns. Tony Brooks-James and Kani Benoit -- who are both healthy, per Cristobal -- would get the bulk of RB touches on Saturday if Freeman is out.

Boise State HC Bryan Harsin is optimistic that sophomore RB Alexander Mattison (leg) will be able to play in Saturday’s Las Vegas Bowl against Oregon.

"Alexander is improving, he’ll get some stuff done this week," Harsin said. "How it feels as he goes into the game will kind of determine it at that point. Knowing Alexander, he usually gets himself back and ready to go, but we won’t know until game time." B.J. Rains of the Idaho Press-Tribune gave credence to that quote by adding that he'd been told by a source that Mattison has a "real chance to play Saturday and that Harsin wasn't just giving 'coach speak' as coaches often do before big games." Mattison leads the Broncos with 1,074 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. Ryan Wolpin will start if he can't.

Oregon redshirt junior DE Jalen Jelks said he will return for his senior season.

Jelks will not enter his name into the 2018 NFL Draft. "I'm back for sure," he said, later adding this: "I missed a lot of plays, and if I can capitalize on that and translate it to next season I could contribute a lot to the draft." The 6-foot-5, 245-pound end broke out with 50 tackles, 6.5 sacks and 15 TFL this fall. An NFL scout told The Oregonian that he had projected Jelks as a potential Day 2 pick in this spring's draft.

The former four-star recruit ended up starting 10 games over two seasons for Baylor, but he repeatedly squandered opportunities to run away with the job despite injuries to 2016-2017 starters Seth Russell and Anu Solomon. True freshman dual-threat Charlie Brewer turned out to be a better fit for Matt Rhule's new offense than Smith, a traditional pro-style pocket passer. Thus, Smith will look for a better opportunity. He'll sit out next season if he transfers within the FBS per NCAA rules, and then he'll have two years of eligibility left beginning in 2019.

Alexander's father says a second round pick or better would be an ideal evaluation for Alexander to turn pro, but there is no cut-off. The article below actually adds a new piece of information to the draft process, as the board requests the player and his family to submit which three games they want to be evaluated.

Oklahoma State QB Mason Rudolph accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl.

Five quarterbacks have accepted an invitation to the all-star game. Six is the standard number, but the event featured eight quarterbacks in 2016 so a few more names could be on the way... namely Baker Mayfield. At times, Rudolph has received plenty of love thanks to his touch and size. However, he and Mayfield have gone in different directions this season. A top two or three round pick might be in his future.

Zierlein is extremely plugged into the NFL evaluation process, specifically offensive linemen. So, when Zierlein states "I think Orlando b\Brown probably goes 1st based on what I know so far" when asked which prospect at the position will be drafted first, we listen. Brown is a mountain of a man, with a listed size of 6-foot-8 and 342-pounds. Oklahoma's offensive line was one of the best in the country this season.

SI's Albert Breer would be surprised if Louisville junior QB Lamar Jackson is selected in the first round.

Breer insinuates the NFL views Jackson as the same player now as he was going into 2016. The questions include anticipation, process a pro offense and the belief Jackson is "more thrower than passer." This topic will be discussed throughout the entire draft process. What we do know is Jackson is one of the top playmakers at his position in years.

Arizona State defensive coordinator Phil Bennett will not return to the Sun Devils for the 2018 season.

Bennett is leaving due to "family matters" that have not been disclosed as this time. The Sun Devils plan was to bring in Herm Edwards at head coach and leave the staff the same. They'll have to replace at least one coach now. Bennett has been the defensive coordinator now for Arizona State, Pitt, Kansas State, Iowa State, Purdue, LSU and TCU.